MILWAUKEE — The newest Consumer Price Index figures show inflation may be slowing, but it doesn't erase the fact you're still paying more at the gas pump and the grocery store than at this same time last year, and you're probably seeing a bigger number on your heating bill too.
With a winter storm set to arrive by the holiday weekend and temps already plunging, air sealing is one of the easiest projects to take care of right now to help your heating bills stay affordable.
"Well, when the kids woke up this morning they said, 'Is the furnace even working?'" joked Greg Koch. "So it was my mission to procure this saran wrap for the windows."
Koch wasn't the only one who came to ACE Hardware in Wauwatosa looking for a kit to help seal off drafty windows.
Assistant Manager Eric Janssen says the kits are hot sellers right now. He said if you've got a rattling glass pane or can feel a temperature difference in the area, you're likely losing heat around your windows.
"A lot of times you'll feel it if you're sitting there or you've got your hand there, right where the sashes meet," Janssen explained. "Or down low where the sash handle is, you'll feel the draft coming in."
If a window sealing kit doesn't stabilize your heating bill, you have the power to pay a set amount each month through We Energies. It's called budget billing.
"So rather than having higher energy bills in the winter and higher energy bills in the summer, when you're cooling your home, it just evens it out so you don't have those peaks and valleys," said Alison Trouy, a spokesperson with the utility company. "We call it budget billing because it helps you budget. You're not going to have a variable rate every month."
Need more options? If you have a utility bill, and you meet income guidelines, you likely qualify for a one-time annual payment through Milwaukee County's Energy Assistance Program.
Maricela Gaona, the program manager, spoke to TMJ4 shortly after having helped an 82-year-old woman with the application process.
"(She's on a) fixed social security income and her words were. 'I'm really struggling to have a bill due next month, and I really need some assistance'."
Gaona said as many as 700 calls a day are coming in for energy assistance in Milwaukee County. But money toward your bill is not where the help ends. Repairing or even replacing your furnace, weatherization services, and much more, are available.
The number to call to begin the application process, or ask questions, is 414-270-4MKE.
